TV: A young Montalbano for the BBC

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Dec. 3 - The young Montalbano will air next spring on the BBC. Following the success of the original TV series “Il Commissario Montalbano” on BBC4, the RAI commercial management was able to also sell to the BBC the complete series of “Young Montalbano,” interpreted by Michele Riondino. This series is a prequel to “Il Commissario Montalbano,” and it was written by Andrea Camilleri and Francesco Bruni based on the following books of the Sicilian writer: "A Month with Montalbano", "The arancini di Montalbano" and "The first survey of Montalbano." "It 's an important result for RAI; a result that opened the way for other Italian series on the international stage of the BBC - said the commercial director of RAI, Luigi De Siervo – This is an achievement made possible by the excellent relations entertained with our British counterpart, consolidated during this transaction. It proves that we are on the right decisional path, - adds De Siervo – following a policy that focuses on quality and on a renovation of RAI, thus gaining an increasingly important role also in the English market. Montalbano is together a tribute to a great Italian writer and to RAI’s production foresight.” “This series brings outs a strong local identity, which is not a weakness - claimed the director, Eleonora Andreatta – but a characteristic of international success. The series’ production, as is the case for Young Montalbano and “Il Commissario Montalbano” is of extremely high quality in terms of writing, directing, acting and staging." The adventures of the early career of the famous Sicilian detective will air on Saturday nights at 9pm in the spring of next year on BBC4.

MONTALBANO’S WORLDYoung Montalbano, set in the early ‘90s, explains how the Montalbano world as we know it was formed: from his first job in the mountain village of Mascalippa until the transfer to Vigata, the public will discover Montalbano’s difficult relationship with his father, the early steps of his friendship with Augello, the early stages of his love affair with Livia (following the long-distance relationship with Mery) and the blossoming of their complicated relationship. In other words, we understand how and why Montalbano has become the real and complete character we all know and love. But, in this series, Montalbano is not just a young man in the process of becoming a man, he is also a detective trying to prove his ability to solve intricate cases. These are based on some short stories by Camilleri, in which the atmosphere and investigation proceedings are in the traditional Montalbano format.